Hand Enclosure Garment

ABSTRACT

A hand enclosure garment  10  with the primary fastening device  52  being fully open to be defined by the free proximal end  54  of the forearm covering  20  and along the radial border  36  to or substantially joint region  56  of the thumb covering  16.  A releasable wrist and/or forearm engagement  72  for encircling the wrist covering  18  and/or the forearm covering  20,  and for releasably securing the wrist covering  18  and/or the forearm covering  20  to a user&#39;s wrist region and/or lower forearm, is also provided, along with a secondary fastening device  61  at or adjacent to the free proximal end  54  of the forearm covering  20  for holding sides of the primary fastening device in close proximity to each other whilst the primary fastening device is in an unfastened state, so that a user can more easily operate the primary fastening device  52  with one hand.

The present invention relates to a hand enclosure garment, and more particularly but not necessarily exclusively to a glove and/or mitten.

Gloves and mittens enclose the hand and are beneficial, particularly in adverse weather conditions, for keeping the hands dry and warm. However, for younger children, and especially infants and toddlers from around 10 months to 36 months old, properly locating the child's hand in the glove or mitten so that the digits enter the correct finger and thumb sheathes is often difficult for a parent, with the parent rarely bothering to check that thumb in particular is correctly inserted.

Furthermore, gloves and mittens are often easily removed and discarded by a young child, with the result frequently being that one or both gloves are lost.

The present invention seeks to provide a solution to these problems.

According to the present invention, there is provided a hand enclosure garment comprising a metacarpal covering portion, a finger covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion, a thumb covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion, a wrist covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion opposite to the finger covering portion, a forearm covering portion for covering at least a distal end portion of a user's forearm and which extends from the wrist covering portion, a primary fastening device which extends from a free distal end of the forearm covering portion, along a region at or adjacent to a radial border of the garment, to or substantially to a metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, so that a hand-insertion opening, when in a first condition with the primary fastening device being fully closed, is only defined by the free-proximal end of the forearm covering portion, and in a second condition with the fastening device being fully open is defined by the free-proximal end of the forearm covering portion and along the region at or adjacent to the said radial border to or substantially to the said metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, whereby access to an interior access opening of the thumb covering portion is improved, a releasable wrist and/or forearm engagement element for encircling the wrist covering portion and/or the forearm covering portion and for releasably securing the wrist covering portion and/or the forearm covering portion to a user's wrist region and/or lower forearm, and a secondary fastening device at or adjacent to the free proximal end of the forearm covering portion for holding sides of the primary fastening device in close proximity to each other whilst the primary fastening device is unfastened, so that a user can more easily operate the primary fastening device with one hand.

Preferable and/or optional features of the invention are set forth in claims 2 to 15, inclusive.

The invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of one embodiment of a hand enclosure garment, in accordance with the present invention and shown in a second condition with a toothed fastener open;

FIG. 2 is a back side view of the hand enclosure garment, shown in FIG. 1, but in a first condition with the toothed fastener closed; and

FIG. 3 shows a palm side view of the hand enclosure garment, shown in FIG. 1 and also in the first condition.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a hand enclosure garment 10 which comprises a metacarpal covering portion 12, a finger covering portion 14, and a thumb covering portion 16. The garment 10 also includes a wrist covering portion 18 and a forearm covering portion 20.

Preferably, the metacarpal covering portion 12, finger covering portion 14 and thumb covering portion 16 are formed of a soft, windproof and preferably water-resistant material, such as prepiled microfleece, having a soft elastic lining, formed from cotton and/or bamboo for example.

The forearm covering portion 20 may be formed of the same material as described above, although advantageously it may be beneficial to form the forearm covering portion 20 of a lighter and/or thinner material which, being less bulky, allows the forearm covering portion 20 to be more easily received inside a sleeve of a jacket or overcoat.

The wrist covering portion 18 may be formed similarly to the metacarpal covering portion 12 or the forearm covering portion 20, as required, or may be formed of an intermediate material which is different from the other two materials and which bridges the two portions 12 and 20.

The metacarpal covering portion 12 is preferably one-piece and generally tubular, providing a palm side 22, a back side 24, a wrist end 26 and a finger sheath end 28. The palm side 22 and the back side 24 are, in this embodiment, continuous without openings, but may include perforations, such as mesh, for breathability dependent on requirements. The palm side 22 may include a pliantly flexible grip portion 30, forming a higher friction contact interface when gripping.

In this case, the finger covering portion 14 extends from the open finger sheath end 28 of the metacarpal covering portion 12. A proximal end 32 of the finger covering portion 14 is open to enable finger insertion, and the distal end 34 of this embodiment is closed. However, the distal end 34 may be open, for example, in the case of fingerless gloves.

The finger covering portion 14 defines a single compartment, in this case, to receive all of a user's fingers. In this embodiment, the garment 10 is a mitten, therefore. However, the finger covering portion 14 may define a plurality of separate finger sheaths, each of which is adapted to receive a separate finger. In this latter case, the garment is a glove.

The garment 10 has a radial border 36 and an ulnar border 38, and the thumb covering portion 16 extends from a side of the metacarpal covering portion 12 at or adjacent to the radial border 36 of the garment 10. The thumb covering portion 16 provides a thumb sheath for a user's thumb, and is open at its proximal end 40 for thumb insertion and closed as its distal end 42. However, again, the distal end 42 may be open as necessity dictates.

To interconnect the thumb covering portion 16 with the metacarpal covering portion 12 and/or the adjacent finger covering portion 14, an interposed thumb gusset 44 may be utilised. This would be typical for a larger garment 10, but may not be required for smaller said garments 10.

The metacarpal covering portion 12, finger covering portion 14 and thumb covering portion 16 may be formed together from single blanks of material, for example, defining front and rear surfaces of the garment 10. Alternatively, they may be formed from a single blank, interconnected at the radial border 36 or ulnar border 38.

The wrist covering portion 18 of the garment 10 is provided at the proximal wrist end 26 of the metacarpal covering portion 12. The wrist covering portion 18 is also preferably tubular, and may be formed from one or two blanks of material defining an outer surface. Again, the wrist covering portion 18 provides a transition between the metacarpal covering portion 12 and the forearm covering portion 20, and therefore may be integrally formed as one-piece with the metacarpal covering portion 12, rather than being a separate piece.

The forearm covering portion 20 extends from a proximal end 48 of the wrist covering portion 18, and as with the other portions described above, is pliantly flexible to enable manipulation of the hand enclosed therewithin when in use. The forearm covering portion 20 is sufficiently long to extend at least partway, and preferably to or around midway, along a user's forearm.

To improve access to an interior access opening 50 of the thumb covering portion 16, a primary fastening device 52 is included which extends from a free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20, along a region at or adjacent to the radial border 36 of the garment 10, to or substantially to a metacarpophalangeal joint region 56 of the thumb covering portion 16. Preferably, a distal end 55 of the primary fastening device 52 terminates opposite or substantially opposite the thumb gusset 44, when provided.

The primary fastening device 52 in this embodiment is elongate and toothed, for example, being a zip. However, the primary fastening device 52 may be any suitable fastening means, such as a hook and loop fastening device, such as Velcro RTM, or push-fit fasteners, such as press-studs.

A hand-insertion opening 58 is provided at least in part at the free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20. In a first condition with the primary fastening device 52 fully closed, the hand-insertion opening 58 is only defined by the free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20. In a second condition with the primary fastening device 52 fully open, as shown in FIG. 1, the hand-insertion opening 58 is expanded to be defined by the free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20 and also spaced-apart opposing longitudinal edges 60 of the primary fastening device 52 extending along the said radial border 36 to or substantially to the metacarpophalangeal joint region 56 of the thumb covering portion 16.

The garment is primarily intended for young children, and therefore to aid a carer or parent when putting a child's hand into the glove or mitten, a second fastening device 61 is provided. The secondary fastening device 61 is preferably at the interior of the forearm covering portion 20. The secondary fastening device 61 is at or adjacent to the free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20, and is adapted to hold portions of the spaced-apart longitudinal edges 60 of the primary fastening device 52 in close proximity to each other, when the primary fastening device 52 is in an unfastened state. In this way, a parent or carer can easily fasten the primary fastening device 52 with one hand, for example, whilst carrying or holding the child in the other hand.

Beneficially, the secondary fastening device 61 is separate of the primary fastening device 52, extending cross-wisely across the longitudinal extent of the primary fastening device 52. The secondary fastening device 61 includes a separate or independent strap 63 having a smaller dimension than that of the primary fastening device 52. Although it is preferable that the strap 63 is not elasticated, it may be wholly or in part elasticated. To hold the strap 63 in place, a further releasable fastener 65 is provided, such as a press-fit fastener.

In a modification to the present embodiment and shown by way of example by a dashed line in FIG. 2, a further elongate fastening device 62, such as the interdigitatable toothed fastener described above, which extends from the free proximal end 54 of the forearm covering portion 20, along or adjacent to the ulnar border 38 of the garment 10, to preferably partway along a medial edge 64 of the metacarpal covering portion 12 may be provided. In this case, a distal end 66 of the further fastening device 62 preferably terminates at or adjacent to a hypothenar region 68 of the metacarpal covering portion 12. This enables improved access to a further interior access opening 70 of the finger covering portion 14.

Preferably, the hand enclosure garment 10 also includes a releasable wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72, preferably being an elongate strap, which encircles the wrist covering portion 18 and/or the forearm covering portion 20 to securely hold the wrist covering portion 18 and/or the forearm covering portion 20 to a user's wrist region and/or lower forearm region. This thus prevents or inhibits simple removal, whilst also allowing a cuff of a coat or jacket to be secured thereby. Advantageously, the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72 may be elasticated, which thereby accommodates users of different sizes, dispensing with the need to have a plurality of parts to meet different sizes of garment 10.

End portions 74 of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72 are releasably interengagable via a releasable fastener 76, and this may conveniently be a hook and loop fastening device, again such as Velcro RTM. However, other fastening means may again be considered, such as a push-fit fastener.

A releasable end retainer 78 is also preferably included for releasably retaining the interengaged end portions 74 of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72. The end retainer 78 is separate of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72, extending cross-wisely across the longitudinal extent of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72. Beneficially, the end retainer 78 is a separate or independent, preferably elasticated, strap having a smaller dimension than that of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72. To hold the end retainer 78 in place, thereby preventing or limiting disengagement of the end portions 74 of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element 72, a further releasable fastener 80 is provided, such as a press-fit fastener.

Although the primary fastening device preferably terminates at the metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, it may extend to and beyond the metacarpophalangeal joint region, thereby extending at least partway along the thumb covering portion. In this way, the sheath of the thumb covering portion can itself be opened to further promote easy insertion.

Furthermore, the primary fastening device may extend to the outside or radial side of the metacarpophalangeal joint region, or may extend to the gusset side or towards the ulnar side of the metacarpophalangeal joint region. This positioning is intended to be incorporated by the phraseology ‘along a region at or adjacent to a radial border of the garment’, used herein and throughout.

To prevent or inhibit a very young child from scratching themselves with the zip or the zip head, a zip head garage may be provided at the closure end, and/or a zip flap may be provided along the longitudinal extent of the fastening device.

It is thus possible to provide a hand enclosure garment which provides at least improved interior access to a thumb covering portion, due to the positioning of the primary fastening device allowing a far greater degree of opening. This enables a parent or carer to insert a very young child's hand much more easily, with the digits being more reliably aligned and inserted into their respective sheathes. By positioning the primary fastening device to terminate at or adjacent to the metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, a hand insertion opening can be revealed which extends to or even beyond an interior access opening of the thumb covering portion. Equally, a further fastening device can be provided on or adjacent to the ulnar border of the garment, and opposite to the primary fastening device at or adjacent to the radial border of the garment, whereby access to the finger covering portion, at least at the medial side, is significantly improved. Furthermore, the greater extension of the garment to at least partway along the forearm of a user, and the use of a separate fastening strap or other wrist and/or forearm engagement element, reduces a likelihood of the garment being removed and misplaced. Also, by use of an end retainer to positively secure ends of the wrist engagement element, release of the wrist engagement element becomes far less likely. A triple-fastening system is also beneficial, in that an interior fastener for retaining open ends of the primary fastening device together allows one-handed closure of the primary fastening device by the parent or carer, whilst the wrist and/or forearm engagement element aids securing of a coat cuff thereto. The design can be used on softer materials, such as lined fleece, whilst still being easy to put on and fasten. The improved wrist and/or forearm engagement element location preferably being slightly above the wrist allows the gloves or mittens to grip better on a sleeve of a coat. The design suits a wider range of materials, meaning more options to consumers whilst making it more cost-effective to produce and sell.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of examples only, and further modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the field without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. 

1. A hand enclosure garment comprising a metacarpal covering portion, a finger covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion, a thumb covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion, a wrist covering portion which extends from the metacarpal covering portion opposite to the finger covering portion, a forearm covering portion for covering at least a distal end portion of a user's forearm and which extends from the wrist covering portion, a primary fastening device which extends from a free distal end of the forearm covering portion, along a region at or adjacent to a radial border of the garment, to or substantially to a metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, so that a hand-insertion opening, when in a first condition with the primary fastening device being fully closed, is only defined by the free-proximal end of the forearm covering portion, and in a second condition with the fastening device being fully open is defined by the free-proximal end of the forearm covering portion and along the region at or adjacent to the said radial border to or substantially to the said metacarpophalangeal joint region of the thumb covering portion, whereby access to an interior access opening of the thumb covering portion is improved, a releasable wrist and/or forearm engagement element for encircling the wrist covering portion and/or the forearm covering portion and for releasably securing the wrist covering portion and/or the forearm covering portion to a user's wrist region and/or lower forearm, and a secondary fastening device at or adjacent to the free proximal end of the forearm covering portion for holding sides of the primary fastening device in close proximity to each other whilst the primary fastening device is unfastened, so that a user can more easily operate the primary fastening device with one hand.
 2. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 1, wherein the primary fastening device is opposite or substantially opposite a thumb gusset interconnecting the thumb covering portion and the metacarpal covering portion.
 3. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising a further fastening device which extends from the free distal end of the forearm covering portion, along a region at or adjacent to an ulnar border of the garment, to partway along a medial edge of the metacarpal covering portion.
 4. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 3, wherein an end of the further fastening device is at or adjacent to a hypothenar portion of the metacarpal covering portion, whereby access to a further interior access opening of the finger covering portion is improved.
 5. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the said primary fastening device and/or the said further fastening device is an elongate fastener.
 6. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 5, wherein the elongate fastener is an interdigitatable toothed fastener.
 7. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the secondary fastening device is on an interior of the forearm covering portion.
 8. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 7, wherein the secondary fastening device is cross-wise strap extending transversely to a longitudinal extent of the primary fastening device, the cross-wise strap including a further releasable fastener.
 9. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein end portions of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element are interengagable via a releasable fastener.
 10. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 9, wherein the releasable fastener is a hook and loop fastener.
 11. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the wrist and/or forearm engagement element is an elongate strap.
 12. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in any one of claims 9 to 11, further comprising a releasable end retainer for releasably retaining the interengaged end portions of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element and which is separate of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element.
 13. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 12, wherein the end retainer is a cross-wise strap extending transversely to a longitudinal extent of the wrist and/or forearm engagement element, the cross-wise strap including a further releasable fastener.
 14. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in claim 13, wherein the further releasable fastener is a push-fit fastener engagable with the metacarpal covering portion.
 15. A hand enclosure garment as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 14, which is at least one of a glove and a mitten.
 16. A hand enclosure garment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 